CINCINNATI — A Cincinnati-area mom died last month after a nurse allegedly administered her an overdose of opioids following a tummy tuck operation. Now, her plastic surgeon is suing the surgery center, stating that their unsafe and unqualified practices are the reason for her death.
“OK, here it is, it’s my turn,” 47-year-old mom Rachel Tussey said in her final TikTok video filmed from her hospital bed right before her surgery. “I feel a big range of emotions, but mostly absolute excitement and gratitude.”
Tussey went in for her tummy tuck operation on Feb. 25 at JourneyLite of Cincinnati, a surgery center. She had been documenting her journey and preparation on TikTok for her nearly 84,000 followers in the weeks leading up to the operation.
Nearly three weeks later, Tussey died in hospice care due to an opioid overdose, according to a lawsuit filed on Tuesday by her surgeon, Dr. Shahryar Tork.
“Rachel’s death was completely unnecessary and caused by a JourneyLite nurse recklessly overdosing Rachel on narcotics, and by a JourneyLite anesthesiologist abandoning their patient,” Tork told us.
WATCH: Rachel Tussey's plastic surgeon accuses the surgery center of being unqualified and reckless, leading to her death
The 32-page lawsuit claims JourneyLite “failed to provide safe recovery and post-anesthesia care.” It also names Associated Anesthesiologist of Springfield, Inc. as a defendant, as they provide anesthesia services at the center.
“This was not a tummy tuck complication; she would be home, I would see her smiling in my office, if other people had done their job right,” Tork said. “This patient was taken from me; she was taken from her family.”
@midlifeunmuted_ #drtork #evandalehealthfairlife#bethesdanorth @Shahryar Tork, MD ♬ original sound - MidLifeUnmuted_
According to the lawsuit, Tussey’s surgery lasted nine hours. During that time, she was given 100 micrograms of fentanyl and .5 milligrams of Dilaudid.
“(Tussey’s) low pain medication dosage needs reflected Mrs. Tussey’s low opioid tolerance level,” the lawsuit says.
That specifically was something Tussey expressed concern over on her TikTok.
“I’m nervous too, I don’t like pain medicine,” she said in a video just days before her surgery.
“I just want to be off of opiates just as quickly as I possibly can,” she said in another.
The lawsuit states that Tork left JourneyLite around 5:50 p.m., after Tussey was stable and transferred to post-op care, which he says is a common practice.
On his way home, at around 5:55 p.m., Tork said he received a call from the post-op team saying Tussey had become hypoxic and unresponsive. The lawsuit claims that during this call, the nurse told Tork that Tussey was given 150 micrograms of fentanyl and .5 milligrams of Dilaudid right after he left — more opioids in a few minutes than she had received during her hours-long surgery.
“This caused her to lose consciousness and sustain an anoxic brain injury due to a prolonged lack of oxygen,” Tork said.
The lawsuit claims that JourneyLite did not have the proper seal on the bag mask being used on Tussey while she was unconscious, leading to the nurse suffocating her. It says the nurses did not call 911 immediately and failed to inform paramedics of the opioids given; and were not properly equipped to handle post-op care.
Tork also said that there was no stethoscope available for him when he returned to JourneyLite during Tussey’s period of unconsciousness.
Tussey was quickly transferred to Bethesda North Hospital, but was already brain-dead according to the lawsuit. She died in hospice care on March 17.
The lawsuit claims that JourneyLite altered Tussey’s medical chart and forms to “cover up” their role in her death after Tork brought up his concerns to leadership about their unqualified and unsafe post-anesthesia care. The center is accused of changing the times of when the opioid was administered, claiming they were given over the course of 27 minutes, rather than all at once.
“They pointed to every possible reason except an opioid overdose, trying to blame Mrs. Tussey’s condition on pulmonary embolism or lidocaine toxicity,” the lawsuit states. “The Bethesda North providers determined that Mrs. Tussey suffered an anoxic brain injury, caused by a lack of oxygen to her brain following an opioid overdose and subsequent acute respiratory failure. The Bethesda North providers ruled out other causes of Mrs. Tussey’s death, including causes that can result from surgical complications.”
Tork said he has cut all ties with JourneyLite. I reached out to JourneyLite for a statement regarding the allegations and lawsuit. At this time, we have not heard back.
Tussey’s family did not wish to speak. However, their attorneys from Mani Ellis & Layne said in a statement that their legal team is currently focused on "a thorough and methodical investigation into the circumstances surrounding" Tussey's death.
In response to Tork's allegations, they are also filing temporary restraining orders to ensure JourneyLite and Associated Anesthesiologists of Springfield Inc. do not destroy, fabricate or delete evidence.
“Our firm is prepared to pursue aggressive legal action to seek appropriate remedies on behalf of the family,” said Bernie Layne, a partner at the firm.
